This section is intended to provide a background or context to the invention that is recited in the claims. The description herein may include concepts that could be pursued, but are not necessarily ones that have been previously conceived, implemented or described. Therefore, unless otherwise indicated herein, what is described in this section is not prior art to the description and claims in this application and is not admitted to be prior art by inclusion in this section.
When a user (‘A’) of a mobile communication device, e.g., a mobile phone, is engaged in a voice call, the person (‘B’) at the other end of the call is not always actively speaking. For example, ‘B’ might briefly pause to think of a response to a question or to search for a piece of information that is required to proceed with the conversation. In this case, and if ‘A’ is also not speaking at this particular time, a person ‘C’ in proximity to ‘A’, who might wish to communicate orally with ‘A’, for example to draw the attention of ‘A’ to another piece of information that might be valuable for the on-going telephone conversation, cannot easily understand that they have an opportunity to do so unless ‘A’ has set the mobile phone into a loudspeaker mode (if supported). That is, the person ‘C’, who can readily ascertain that person ‘A’ is not currently speaking, cannot readily ascertain that the person ‘B’ is currently also not speaking, i.e., that there is a temporary lull in the conversation during which it may be acceptable and useful to interact with person ‘A’.